‽istis re-ponders international days - or not (weekending June 11th 2022)
This week ‽istis learnt:
- On World Environment Day (Sunday June 5th) that
There is Only One Earth
In the universe are billions of galaxiesIn our galaxy are billions of planetsBut there is #OnlyOneEarthLet’s take care of it. (1)
and on the International Day for the Fight against Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated Fishing (also Sunday June 5th), that ‘efforts by the international community to ensure the sustainability of fisheries are being seriously compromised by illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing activities.
According to the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing activities are responsible for the loss of 11–26 million tonnes of fish each year.’ (2)
On Russian Language Day (Monday) ‽istis learnt that June 6th was the anniversary of the birthday of the Russian poet A.S. Pushkin. ‘...as part of the program to support and develop multilingualism and cultural diversity, the UN celebrates the Day of the Russian Language. One of the goals of this program is to maintain the equality of all six official languages of the UN: English, Arabic, Spanish, Chinese, Russian and French. (3). Though ‽istis wonders what might be spoken about this dominance (and the composition of the Security Council and other arrangements of the UN organisation) in some of the other 6,903 distinct languages. (4)
‽istis learnt on World Food Safety Day (Tuesday June 7th) - that ‘Access to sufficient amounts of safe food is key to sustaining life and promoting good health… Food safety has a critical role in assuring that food stays safe at every stage of the food chain… With an estimated 600 million cases of foodborne illnesses annually, unsafe food is a threat to human health and economies, disproportionally affecting vulnerable and marginalized people, especially women and children, populations affected by conflict, and migrants.’ (5)
On World Oceans Day (Wednesday June 8th) ‽istis learnt that ‘The ocean covers over 70% of the planet. It is our life source, supporting humanity’s sustenance and that of every other organism on earth. The ocean produces at least 50% of the planet’s oxygen, it is home to most of earth’s biodiversity, and is the main source of protein for more than a billion people around the world.’ (6)
But then, on Thursday, Friday and indeed Saturday the UN has something of a rest, with no designated world or international days.
So ‽istis wondered what awareness-raising, lobbying and consideration might be underway currently to fill those empty days?
What ‘day’ might you wish to bring to the world stage…?
Perhaps, possibly, maybe international and global days are indeed ‘occasions to educate the general public on issues of concern, to mobilize political will and resources to address global problems, and to celebrate and reinforce achievements of humanity.’ (7)
Yet ‽istis couldn’t help wonder about the impact of the UN International Days…
Just how more taken care of is #OnlyOneEarth‽
What is the possible potential impact of maintaining the equality of all six official languages of the UN (especially Russian)‽
How fewer cases of foodborne illnesses will there be next year‽
How more protected are the oceans and all of us who benefit from them‽
…World Impact Evaluation Day, anyone‽
© Pistis
NB: further reflections and comments linked to this week’s theme and past blog entries to be found on Twitter: replies, retweets (which don’t necessarily indicate approval, sometimes the very opposite!) and ‘likes’: @Pistis_wonders. ‘Follows’ and respectful comment and dialogue welcome...
https://www.un.org/ru/observances/russian-language-day and courtesy of Google ‘translate’
‘The most extensive catalog of the world’s languages, generally taken to be as authoritative as any, is that of Ethnologue (published by SIL International), whose detailed classified list as of 2009 included 6,909 different languages.’ https://www.linguisticsociety.org/content/how-many-languages-are-there-world
